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Xbox price cut, new model released

By Reuters
Seattle, 14 Jul 2008

Microsoft has cut the price of its best-selling Xbox 360 Pro model game console with a 20GB hard drive to $299 from $349.

The company also introduced a new Xbox 360 model with a 60GB hard drive, which will go on sale in stores in the US and Canada for $349 in early August.

Microsoft announced the price cut and a new model before the start of this week's E3 video game industry trade show in Los Angeles. The price cut was widely reported in game industry blogs since last week.

The company last cut the price of the Xbox Pro in August, from $399 to $349, prior to the release of blockbuster title, Halo 3, the following month.

A cut to $299 makes the Xbox 360 Pro $100 less than Sony's PlayStation 3 with a 40GB hard drive. Microsoft is locked in a three-way competition with Nintendo's Wii and the PlayStation 3, which comes with a high-definition Blu-ray video player.

Price cuts from Nintendo and Sony seem unlikely. Nintendo's $249 Wii is still in short supply at many retailers, while Sony has said it aims to turn its video game business profitable this year, making a cut hard to swallow.

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